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PCB007-Oct2018

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OCTOBER 2018 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 9
tolerances with 3) an any-panel-count capabil-
ity, all while operating with 4) less energy, 5)
fewer chemicals, and 6) delivering fabricated
product in about an hour with 7) a 99.9% ex-
pected yield.
Those are a LOT of challenging objectives to
achieve all at the same time.
We'll take you through the plant, talk to
the staff, and bring you technical details from
each of the leading equipment suppliers who
worked as a team with Stepinski to create
this step forward in North American fabrica-
tion. You'll also meet the new generation of
twenty-somethings who are innovating PCB
fabrication operations. GreenSource shows us
what 21st-century printed circuit fabrication
will look like.
We lead off this issue with a walking tour of
the entire facility. Stepinski and Barry Matties
discuss the processes and the equipment. As
they do, the conversation always comes back
around to planning for the future.
Next, Happy Holden takes us deeper into the
modernized methods at GreenSource, and ex-
actly how they contribute to "Lean" as well as
"green" with an assessment of the manufac-
turing efficiencies.
Atotech is one of the key equipment suppli-
ers we showcase in this issue. The lively, tech-
nically rich conversation with the Atotech sup-
port team dives into all the Atotech processes,
environmental innovations, and chemistry on-
line at GreenSource.
Drills and laser processing equipment play
a vital role at GreenSource. In our next article,
Patty Goldman explores all the Schmoll and
Burkle equipment with Burkle's David How-
ard. If you've only ever thought of drills as a
mechanical fabrication step, you need to read
this interview.
The staff play a critical part in the operation
of any manufacturing facility. I gathered all
the employee interviews we conducted on site
and spotted some common themes and objec-
tives that GreenSource is employing to build a
world-class, sustainable staff.
Next, we track back to the equipment with
an exposé on InduBond and their innovative
lamination technology. InduBond's use of elec-
trical induction to laminate multilayers pro-
vides significant cost savings and efficiency,
making this conversation between Víctor Láza-
ro and the I-Connect007 editorial team a must-
read.
In the automated optical inspection (AOI)
department, GreenSource worked with CIMS.
We talk with David Ravino about the CIMS in-
stallation, metrology, and integration into the
factory's automation database.
Jim Brown, GreenSource account manag-
er, sat down with Patty Goldman during our
visit. They discuss precisely how GreenSource
will sell to its customers. For a factory this ad-
vanced and this automated, the sales and sup-
port roles are dramatically different, making
this article an insightful read.
Turning back once again to the strategic
equipment vendors, we showcase AWP, who
fill a crucial role in the handling of board pan-
els to automate the process. AWP has dozens
of pieces of board-handling equipment in the
automated line; the complexity of the design,
engineering, testing, and delivery must have
been quite an undertaking. I-Connect007 gets
the story from Jochen Zeller, AWP founder and
vice president.
Next, we talk with Bob Lazarra, president at
Circuit Connect in Nashua, New Hampshire.
Lazarra shares about the environmental cul-
ture around electronics production in New
Hampshire, and Circuit Connect's long history
with green manufacturing.
Closing out the discussion, Patty Goldman
explores chemistry lab details with Green-
Source's Mark Chassé, including the new role
of the lab in monitoring and maintaining an
automated facility.
As if that weren't enough, columnists John
Mitchell and Mike Carano file their latest.
PCB007
Nolan Johnson is managing editor
of
PCB007 Magazine. Nolan brings
30 years of career experience fo-
cused almost entirely on electronics
design and manufacturing.
To contact Johnson, click here.